Chapter 462 - Road Construction Divine Arts

The Half-Moon Colt was intoxicated by its newfound ability, but Gaven was not.The fact that the God of Corruption and Degradation’s followers appeared on the outskirts of Mesnoel indicates that the Necrotic Mystlock Lock there isn’t simply out of control.

It is very likely that these cultists did it on purpose, as for the goal.

The specific goal is hard to guess, but the ultimate goal is always the same.

That is to honor their own deity and obtain even greater power.

Considering the God of Corruption and Degradation is in a demigod ruined state, these cultists are most likely trying to revive their deity by all means.

Valon, the Grand Inquisitor, approved of Gaven’s speculation, "Unlike other evil god’s followers, all of Moando’s servants can be considered an extension of Moando’s will. Though it can’t manipulate its servants as freely as when it was alive, its influence still persists.

They have only one purpose now and forever, and that is to revive Moando."

The quickest way to revive the God of Corruption and Degradation is to enhance its divine power; nothing is faster than corrupting a forest, forcing more creatures to succumb to the power of corruption.

However, here in Comanso, it has failed resurrection after resurrection, not gaining strength but rather consuming a great deal of its servants and its own power.

That’s why those servants are looking for shortcuts, wanting to use the power of the Mystlock Locks to spread corruption swiftly.

There are but two ways they can use the Mystlock Locks.

The first is to gain control over this elven relic city and directly change the application of the locks," said Gaven with certainty, denying, "It’s definitely not that. Although we haven’t had time to approach, we can feel that the Mystlock Lock Barrier of Mesnoel is largely intact; we can’t even fully grasp the true situation inside.

If those cultists really had control of the barrier, the commotion they caused would not be so small. I reckon a good half of the Mir Forest would be infected with necrotic plague."

Realizing it was a Magic Plague rather than an ordinary one, Gaven actually relaxed quite a bit.

Compared to a common plague, a Magic Plague has the difficult-to-eradicate characteristic.

But in terms of contagiousness, it is weaker than a common plague, usually very regional.

Once you enter such a region, the likelihood of contracting the plague increases significantly; if you don’t, there’s little danger.

This dependency of the Magic Plague on energy means without energy as support, Magic Plague is just a common illness.

"This possibility is indeed not great. Moando’s complete control over his servants leaves them no room for self-development. They are only good at using the powers Moando granted them, not others.

Therefore, the most likely method they would adopt is the second one, an evil sacrifice.

By this means, they channel the residual power of the God of Corruption and Degradation, allowing it to permeate the Mystlock Lock Barrier by leveraging similar powers, and guide it for their own use.

If it’s that method, finding their core altar will be paramount. Once we destroy it, many problems will be easily solved," the Judgment Chief threw out his second conjecture.

"The Grand Inquisitor is truly professional, giving us a clear direction to exert our efforts," Gaven admitted wholeheartedly.

Before coming to the Hammer of Holy Light, to say that Gaven was like a headless fly might be an exaggeration, but he indeed had trouble finding leads.

After all, you have to find a place to start.

With a target in mind, things become much simpler.

Valon accepted this praise as his due, then said, "In this special war, numbers don’t mean much; even Holy Warriors are the same, especially with such a distance between two places, there’s no way to mobilize reinforcements from here. It’s better to select a few elites to go. Darnell Inquisitor and August Inquisitor both have extensive combat experience against Moando’s servants."

Of course, there are more than these two Transcendent Holy Knights in the Hammer of Holy Light, but under the circumstance of having acquaintances, it is generally preferred to ask friends to lend a hand first, since both sides are well-acquainted, there’s no need for a re-adjustment period on the battlefield.

In fact, Gaven thought of them too, as for Grand Inquisitor Valon.

He couldn’t leave the Hammer of the Holy Light Abbey easily unless it was a life-or-death crisis.

While they established their illustrious name in the valley, they also attracted a host of enemies.

There needs to be a powerful Holy Warrior to preside over here; that is his greatest responsibility since becoming the Grand Inquisitor.

"Where is August Inquisitor now?" Gaven asked.

"He’s gone to the Land of Sealing. That place has become a holy site, very suitable for a Holy Warrior’s garrison. He will be stationed there for some time, establishing a forward outpost for the Hammer of Holy Light, keeping watch over the darkness that grows unchecked within Comanso."

"You act quickly. I’ll personally communicate with August Inquisitor about this."

"Luna, are you sure you are alright? Especially facing other servants of Moando again? Although God Moando has fallen and can’t directly control the Seed of Moando, the internal hierarchy among these cultists is oppressive. Higher-ranking servants can directly control and influence the lower-ranking ones..." Valon, the Grand Inquisitor, was still not at ease with the Half-Moon Colt’s condition.

"Grand Inquisitor, see for yourself!" The Half-Moon Colt, candid as ever, directly showed part of her professional panel to Valon.

Even with his wide experience, the Grand Inquisitor couldn’t help rubbing his somewhat graying beard after seeing it, exclaiming in disbelief. Such a circumstance was unheard of.

Luna’s condition not only eliminated the original risk but also turned misfortune into a blessing, becoming a bane for corruption.

Those who wanted to use the Seed of Moando against her would have it backfire; she would wipe them out in the area she excelled.

Understanding this, Valon took a long breath and said, "Then I won’t keep you, wishing you a triumphant victory."

"I appreciate your good words, Grand Inquisitor."

"Take good care of Luna for me."

"Haha... Next, it’s not certain who will be taking care of whom! From now on, it’s me who will be relying greatly on Miss Luna’s strength."

After bidding farewell to Valon, Gaven sent the Dog Demon back to Weizemay Manor ahead of time and mounted the Half-Moon Colt, flying straight for the Land of Sealing.

It was clear that Luna, having just gained new power, was somewhat eager to try it out.

But as part of the Fae Race’s nature, she couldn’t bring herself to destroy nature and kill trees simply to test her abilities.

Seeing this, Gaven craftily suggested, "Run along the trade road, particularly where the weeds are denser. Initiate Forest Stride in those areas. That way, we’re not just destroying nature, but rather maintaining the road."

If such a suggestion had been made to a real Druid, it would have been untenable.

But to Luna, it made her eyes light up, for she had received a true education as a Holy Warrior, and helping others could take precedence over the ways of nature.

With that personal hurdle overcome, the rest became much easier to handle.

Folding her wings, she ran wildly along the trade road towards the Rosaville Road.

Dark flames rose from her hooves, and plants within thirty centimeters of her steps burst into flames, which were indeed black flames.

"Fire! Fire! Quick, come and put it out!"

"What’s going on? What happened? How could there be a fire out of the blue?"

"It’s that warhorse’s fault. The flames from her hooves... Hey, doesn’t that warhorse look familiar? Looks a lot like Miss Luna from the monastery."

"It’s not just similar, it is Miss Luna. That’s Duke Gaven on her back—they just came out from the monastery. But wasn’t Miss Luna an Asperi? How come she has turned into a creature resembling a Hell Nightmare, with hooves bearing hellfire?"

"Hey, this isn’t ordinary flame, even hellfire couldn’t burn this quickly."

Cries of alarm rose from the trade road.

Unable to suppress her curiosity, Luna descended to the ground after they had moved far away from the Hammer of the Holy Light Abbey; the area was still quite busy with traders.

The black flame was not actual fire but the rapid decay of the vegetation, followed by the rapid extraction of natural force.

With Luna running at full speed, she had only covered a few meters when the corrupted natural power, in the form of a black fog, caught up with her.

Since Luna was so fast, the Corruption Black Fog had a delayed effect, making a black tail more than ten meters long that followed her.

And the decayed plants maintained their original shape, devoid of any green, with pure black being all that remained.

Curious traders couldn’t help approaching for a closer look. The most update n0vels are published on ɴovel(ꜰ)ɪre.nᴇt

When the wind lifted by their steps passed over the weeds, they scattered with a swoosh, turning into piles of black dust—not the kind from burning, but from complete decay after years of erosion.

A knowledgeable trader couldn’t resist picking up a pinch of the decayed black ash. After smelling it, his expression shifted, and he murmured, "This is the Power of Decay, belonging to that Evil God. How could Miss Luna possess such power? Hmm... it’s not entirely the Power of Decay. If it were from that Evil God, it would be contagious... Strange, very strange... Some of the power has also entered the soil here, ensuring no plants will grow for two or three years. Could they be using this method to clear weeds and maintain the road? If so, it’s quite efficient."

Unfortunately, no one answered his question. By the time he looked up again, all he saw was the distant, rapidly retreating giant black tail,

Gaven had apparently realized that this was a Spell for paving and maintaining roads.

Especially in sparse, uncivilized wilderness.

What’s the biggest nuisance for earthen roads?

Of course, it’s thorny weeds and grass, especially the roads less traveled.

In just one summer, they could be overwhelmed by vegetation.

And the Valley had plenty of such roads.

The road from Weizemay Manor to Rosaville was also in such a state.

Once planned accordingly, having Luna run back and forth along the path three or four times would carve out a rudimentary road—tasks like water channels and compaction would follow later.

And laying down hard stones? Such luxury was reserved for the core roads of big cities like Waterdeep, with most alleyways being muddy paths—to say nothing of wildlands.

Hard earthen roads were the main theme of Felen’s pathways.

Word had it that Komeer’s War Mages had developed a Spell that could directly lay asphalt roads, though its veracity was unknown.

Anyway, for Gaven, having Luna’s Forest Stride and road-maintenance power was enough in the short term.

Running wildly on the trade road, they couldn’t gather natural power comparable to that of dense forests.

But the quantity they could collect on the road, though small, would accumulate to a significant amount with time.

Just reaching Rosaville Road, this thirty-kilometer stretch of earthen path had caused Luna’s body to accumulate the Power of Corruption to its limit.

Even what was absorbed through Forest Stride wasn’t pure Natural Power, but a corrupted form which needed processing by the Furnace of Corruption.

The amount of Power of Corruption in Luna’s body was now evident externally.

As the Power of Corruption surged in, black flames began to spread up her limbs.

Once full, Luna’s body turned completely black, except for her wings and the symbol of the Dragon Oak Mother Tree on her forehead.

With her Power of Corruption at its capacity, the Half-Moon Colt no longer needed to run on the ground.

Spreading her wings and taking to the sky, Luna couldn’t help uttering an incredulous gasp as her wings unfurled.